Wesfarmers (WES)

Wesfarmers
has followed rival Woolworths into a property book adjustment. The parent company of Coles plans to have the supermarket chain enter into a partnership with a real estate investor, which would hold about $700 million worth of shopping centres. Wesfarmers has employed Goldman Sachs and RBS to review the property strategy for Coles Group, while Jones Lang Lasalle is advising the retailer on the search for a suitable partner for the tranche of about 25 centres. This differs from the Woolworths strategy, which is a complete spin-off of about $1.4 billion worth of centres. It shows the two rivals are focused on retailing rather than property management. News of the Wesfarmers plan surfaced on Tuesday, and the share price was up about 1.2 per cent on a day the S&P/ASX was up about 0.2 per cent. It is reasonable to suggest the price movement was associated with the Coles move.